Over the past five years, Ruby Nightingale has been releasing music sporadically on Bandcamp. While many artists do the same thing, she hasn’t had the benefit of thriving within a single regional scene, as she’s bounced from Australia to Hong Kong and is now calling America’s East coast home. Recently she’s found an ally in Cameron Boucher, the guitarist-vocalist in Sorority Noise, Old Gray, and Small Circle. Boucher engineered her last record and did the same for Orion’s Belt, due out August 1.
The A.V. Club is premiering “Breathing Growth” ahead of the album’s release, and it shows Nightingale’s growth as a songwriter. Though the track’s heart is based around Nightingale’s gently plucked guitar and operatic vocals—she’s an actual opera singer—the ambient swirls that color the track give it a stunning depth. The sweeping noises in the background allow other instruments to dart into the song, retreating just as quickly as they came, enabling Nightingale to create a haunting world that’s all her own.
Pre-orders for Orion’s Belt are available now.